Non-academic requirements include:

Pharmacy Admission Information Form (AIF)

All applicants to the Waterloo School of Pharmacy must complete a Pharmacy Admission Information Form (AIF). In addition to your academic record, the AIF requests information about you and your involvement in activities. The information you provide will be kept confidential and will be used by our Admissions Committee in their decisions. For more information on how to complete the AIF, please go to the Quest Student Information System website.

Reference

As part of the Admission Information Form (AIF), you will be asked to provide us with the name and contact information for an individual of your choosing who is prepared to submit a reference on your behalf. This individual should preferentially be a Pharmacist, so that they can comment on your suitability for the profession. Alternatively, a Physician or Nurse may act as your reference. In any case, the individual completing this form cannot be a relative of yours. A link to the online completion of the Reference Letter Form will be sent automatically to the individual providing the reference after the AIF is filled out and submitted by the applicant. For information purposes only, you may click here for a sample of the Reference Letter Form. Please do not ask your reference to complete this form as is; they must fill out the form online on your behalf.

CASPer is an online test which assesses for non-cognitive skills and interpersonal characteristics that we believe are important for successful students and graduates of our pharmacy program, and will complement the other tools that we use for applicant screening. All applicants to the Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) program at the University of Waterloo are required to complete this online assessment of personal characteristics. More information and links to additional resources are available on the School's CASPer Test webpage.

Interview

Based on information available to the Admissions Committee (academic background, Admission Information Form, CASPer test score, and Reference Letter Form), selected individuals will be invited to participate in an interview. During the interview, the applicant will have the opportunity to meet with various members of the School and community of Pharmacy professionals. Additionally, applicants will be required to complete a Fundamental Skills Assessment (FSA) as part of the interview process. Details will be provided in the Interview Invitation.

Fundamental Skills Assessment (FSA)

A Pharmacist requires excellent intellectual qualifications along with a proficient ability to communicate with patients and colleagues from various professions. They must also have a strong foundation in math skills. On the interview day, you will be tested for your:

reading comprehension,

ability to communicate your views in written form, and

basic mathematical skills (using the metric system)

This test will be conducted with a time limit. Further information regarding this test will be provided in the Interview Invitation.

Experience

Adequately demonstrating your motivation for and insight into the profession of pharmacy through work or volunteer experience in a pharmacy setting is important. This experience is also expected to yield a positive reference from a practicing pharmacy professional, as described above. In addition to this, volunteer experience in the community and work experience are important considerations, in light of our program's focus on both community service learning and coop experiential education. Full-time work experience, for some period of time, is ideal.

Important note: High school students who are interested in applying for Conditional Admission to Pharmacy (CAP) status should refer to the CAP section of this website.